Breakdown of نسافر إلى الجبل قريبا.
الal
the
جبلjabal
mountain
إلىilâ
to
سافرsâfara
to travel
قريباqarîban
soon
Questions & Answers about نسافر إلى الجبل قريبا.
Why does the word قريبا have an extra alif at the end instead of just being قريب?
That ending marks it as an adverb! The word قريب is an adjective meaning "near" or "close." When we add the "-an" ending (called tanween fatha, written here with the extra alif as ـًا), it turns into an adverb of time meaning "soon" or "shortly."
Since the action is happening "soon," why doesn't the verb have a future prefix like سـ?
Just like in English where you can say "We are traveling soon," Arabic often uses the present tense verb (نسافر) along with a time word like قريبا to express an upcoming event. You could add the future prefix and say سنسافر (we will travel), but it is not strictly required when the context already makes the future timing clear.
Where is the word for "we" in this sentence?
It is built directly into the verb! The letter ن (noon) at the very beginning of نسافر is the prefix that means "we" in the present tense. Because the verb already contains this information, you don't need to use the independent pronoun نحن (we) unless you want to add extra emphasis.
Does the preposition إلى change how we pronounce the noun الجبل?
Yes, it does. In Arabic, prepositions like إلى (to) force the noun right after them into the "genitive" case. This means if you are reading with full vowel endings, the last letter of الجبل (the mountain) takes a short "i" sound (kasra), making it sound like "al-jabali".
Learn نسافر إلى الجبل قريبا and more in Arabic
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free